Home Once More
by firnoviel
Summary: Sequel to Living History. Draco and Hermione must now face the trials and tribulations of their relationship back at Hogwarts. Will they be able to make their relationship work, or will they be torn apart by their different worlds? Please review!
1. Chapter 1

After many requests, I have decided to write a sequel to _Living History_. If you haven't already read that fic, I would suggest that you did, because you probably won't understand this one if you don't. However, if you would still like to attempt reading this, feel free. This is just a preview, so please review! If I don't get many reviews, I won't update very quickly.

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, I never have, and I never will, so consider this my disclaimer for all future chapters.

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Hermione climbed back up the stairs to her dorm after saying good-bye to Draco at the entrance of the Gryffindor common room. They were now officially dating, but they had decided to keep their newly formed relationship on the down-low until a more appropriate time. Both had realized that this new information would come as a shock to the entire school, since Hermione and Draco had been enemies from day one.

For now, they would start out with being more polite to each other in public, and their relationship would just have to be continued in secret. Hermione couldn't even begin to imagine what Harry and Ron would say when they found out...Ron! Oh, what _would _he say? Hermione almost began to tremble at the impending wrath of her two best friends when they found out that she was dating their worst enemy.

Well, Draco had changed. He wasn't really the evil person they had all believed he was, so perhaps she could get him to extend the hand of friendship to Draco and Ron. Yes, she would have to talk to him about it tomorrow.

After thinking about her new-found situation for a while, Hermione finally drifted off to sleep.

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Draco was pacing the deserted Slytherin common room. He felt an overwhelming joy that he and Hermione were now dating, but at the same time, a dread filled his heart. What would his father say? How would he break it to the rest of the Slytherins?

For years he had preached against allowing "mudbloods" into the wizarding world, saying it was foolish and they were worthless, deserving to be wiped from the face of the planet. But now, after seeing what it was like when one race attempted the genocide of another, he couldn't honestly say that he wished to see non-purebloods destroyed.

He threw himself down on one of the couches and ran a hand through his silver-blonde hair with a sigh. Eventually, he fell asleep, but his dreams were plagued with swirling mists, bullet shots, and the pained screams of children.

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The next morning, Hermione went down to breakfast with Harry and Ron, both of whom were glad to have their friend back. Harry walked on her left and Ron on her right, making her feel as though she had a bodyguard. The thought made her giggle, and Harry looked at her questioningly.

"Oh, it's just that with the two of you walking on either side of me like this, I feel like I have a bodyguard or something!" she explained.

"Well, someone has to keep you safe from tripping buffoons. We don't want any Slytherins coming within a mile of you," Harry told her, putting his arm around her shoulders in a friendly manner. Hermione enjoyed his brotherly sentiments, but was saddened by his words in reference to Draco.

When they entered the Great Hall, Hermione's eyes roved over to the Slytherin table where she hoped to see a flash of blonde hair. She wasn't disappointed, and to her delight, she saw that he was watching her. She almost waved in her joy, but remembering the situation, she settled for a quick smile before sitting down with her back to him.

As she was spooning up a plate of scrambled eggs for herself, she felt Ron's hand twining itself into her hair, and she immediately shrugged it out. When she sat back, Ron gave her a hurt look, which she pretended not to see.

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Okay, so it begins. I've never written a sequel before, so I'll need lots of reviews to keep me going! I'd like to get at least ten per chapter, so start reviewing! I know it's short, but this is just a preview, remember. Future chapters will be quite a bit longer, most of the time.


	2. Chapter 2

I probably would have put this chapter up sooner, but I think the email alerts were down again, so I decided to wait until they were up and running before posting another chapter, just to ensure that chapter one got as many reviews as possible. Seriously guys, review! Even if you don't like it terribly well or whatever, it's just a nice thing to do. If an author goes through the trouble of writing something for you to read, it's just courteous to leave a review.

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Draco watched the short scene play out between Hermione and Ron, and when he saw Ron winding his hand in Hermione's hair, he felt incensed that the red-head would dare touch his girlfriend. However, he had to keep his cool in public, despite his overwhelming urge to punch Ron's lights out. He was relieved to see Hermione quickly brush Weasley's hand out of her hair.

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After her close encounter of the Weasley kind, Hermione was careful to keep Ron at arm's length, so to speak. Walking through the corridors, sitting on a couch in the common room, or even studying in the library she made sure to keep Harry between them. She knew they had both noticed a change, but until she could figure out a way to tell them that she and Draco were dating, Harry and Ron would have to remain in the dark.

As she was sitting in the common room that evening attempting to think of ways to tell Harry and Ron about this new development, Hermione was startled by a knocking at the window behind her. She turned to see a large black owl with luminous green eyes staring at her with a note tied to his leg.

Hermione jumped up and opened the window and the owl fluttered into the room, alighting on the back of one of the unoccupied armchairs and extended it's leg. She quickly untied the letter and gave the owl a little treat from her pocket before it flew back out the window which she closed behind it.

Glancing at the parchment in her hands, Hermione saw that the letter was for her. She plopped back down on the couch and unrolled it.

_Dear Hermione,_

_Meet me in the Astronomy Tower at 11 tonight._

_Love, Draco_

Hermione felt a bubbling joy well up inside her when she saw the "love" part of the letter, but she had to repress it when she remembered where she was. Ron and Harry were giving her odd looks, so she quickly thought of an excuse.

"Uh, McGonagall just wanted to tell me that I received a perfect score on that essay she had us write on the dangers of transforming a frog into a prince," she lied.

"But that essay isn't due for another week!" Ron said.

"Ron, I always turn my homework in early, remember?" Hermione said. Ron just nodded as he suddenly remembered the fact.

When she glanced at Harry, though, he didn't look as convinced as Ron. Hermione tried to give him a confused look, as though to say 'what? I'm still the same Hermione and I'm telling the truth, as always!', but apparently she needed to work on her body language, because it looked like she had suddenly developed a tick instead.

"Uh, I need to use the loo," she said and turned on her heel to make a hasty retreat, choosing to ignore Ron's "too much information!" comment.

Once she had made it to the restroom, she locked the door-not that it would do too much good in a wizarding school-and let out the little fan-girl type scream she had been holding in ever since she received Draco's letter. A couple of second years who happened to be walking by the door at the time heard the noise, gave each other terrified looks, and dashed away.

Finally, she unlocked the door after stuffing the note down her shirt to be placed in her special memory box later. She went back and rejoined Harry and Ron at the table.

"Feel better?" Ron scoffed. Hermione just shot him a death glare before turning back to her homework.

After a couple minutes, she could feel Harry's eyes on her. When he didn't stop staring, she gave up and turned to him. "What?" she asked.

He leaned over as though to whisper in her ear. Hermione leaned in to hear what he had to say. "You're not...uh..._stuffing_, are you? Because you probably shouldn't use crumpled parchment if you are," Harry said with a meaningful glance at her chest. Hermione suddenly felt herself turn a million shades of red. If she hadn't known Harry as long as she did, she would have socked him for that comment. Instead, she just dashed off to her room like a jackrabbit.

"Crap!" she said when she slammed the door to her room shut. Stuffing a piece of paper down one's shirt always worked so well for the women in the movies! Too bad she had forgotten that her own chest was tiny and she had to wear padded bras to give herself any curves at all. She looked in the mirror. Sure enough, it looked as though one of her breasts was made solely of crumpled paper. She quickly pulled out the note and shoved it into the little memory box she kept hidden in the bottom of her trunk at the foot of her bed.

Once she realized just how silly the scene in the common room had been, Hermione threw herself on her bed and laughed herself to sleep.

After a few hours, she heard another insistent tapping on the window and looked up to see Draco's owl. Realization dawned when she looked at her watch and saw that it read 11:15. Without a word, she sprang out of bed, grabbed a black cloak and dashed off to the Astronomy Tower.

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Okay, how was that? I tried to be kinda funny in this chapter, but I don't know if it worked too well. What do you guys think? Please review! Ideas are welcome...Oh, and ignore what I said in the last chapter. These chapters aren't going to be terribly long because I don't have this story mapped out in my head like the last one. I just write until I'm out of ideas for the chapter.


	3. Chapter 3

Thanks to those who reviewed. I would like to have 10-15 reviews before I post chapter 4 (more than 15 is totally cool as well).

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Hermione rushed up the stairs to the astronomy tower, pushed open the door and stepped inside, panting from the exertion of running through the entire school while trying not to be caught.

"Nice to know you care enough to show up," a voice hissed from a dark corner.

"Draco? I'm sorry; I went to my room for a minute and sat down on the bed. The next thing I knew, it was past eleven and your owl woke me up," Hermione explained.

"Uh-huh. I bet you just wanted to spend more time with your precious _Weasel_. I've seen the way he looks at you," Draco snapped, stepping out of the shadows.

Hermione was shocked and dismayed at Draco's behavior. "Look, I told you the truth. I fell asleep, _by myself, _in my own room!" Hermione drew herself up to her full height at glared at Draco. "If you're going to accuse me of things with no reason, I'm just going to leave," Hermione snapped and turned on her heel, reaching for the doorknob.

"No, Hermione, wait!" Draco called behind her. He ran up beside her and wrapped his arms around her. At first Hermione stiffened, but she couldn't help but relax into his strong arms. "I'm sorry, Hermione, I've just been a little-tense since we got back," he whispered into her hair. When she turned around to face him, she was finally able to see just how drawn and haggard his face looked.

"Draco, what's...what's wrong?" she asked, her voice laden with concern. She reached a hand up and put her palm against his cheek.

Rather than give a response, Draco hugged her close to him and placed his chin on her shoulder so she could no longer see his face. She wrapped her arms around him in response and held him for what seemed like both an eternity and a matter of moments at the same time. When he finally pulled away, his eyes had a sad, far-away look and he looked as though all of his energy had been sapped from his body.

"I've wanted to hold you all day," he whispered. "How I wish that we could just tell everyone that we're together without having to suffer the wrath of the entire school and my parents," he sighed. Hermione just nodded in agreement.

"Well, there was actually something else I wanted to show you while we're here," Draco said, a light suddenly coming back into his eye. "Come here," he commanded, sitting on a sofa by one of the huge windows which provided a perfect view of the night sky. Hermione plopped down next to him and he put his arm around her shoulder. "Now, watch."

Hermione turned to gaze out the window and was just in time to see a white streak flash across the sky. Before she could turn say anything, another flash rent the sky near the horizon. In a matter of moments, the night was filled with hundreds of radiant bands.

"You brought me here to watch a meteor shower? How did you know that I enjoy astronomy so much?" Hermione asked, turning to Draco with wondrous eyes.

Turning so he could look her in the face, Draco smiled and said, "I didn't, but_ I _love astronomy, so I wanted you to watch this with me."

Hermione smiled and placed her head on his chest to continue watching the beautiful show in front of her.

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She awoke to find Draco gently shaking her shoulder and whispering in rather urgent tones.

"Hermione...Hermione, wake up!" he hissed.

"What is it?" she groaned, not realizing who was waking her.

"Hermione, we fell asleep and now it's morning and we're still in the Astronomy Tower together. We've got to get out of here before anyone catches us!" he said.

Suddenly, Hermione was wide awake and as jittery as though she had just had five cups of coffee. "What do we do? _What _do we _do_?_ Whatdowedo?!_" She began pacing back and forth like a caged leopard.

"Hermione, calm down," Draco said, stepping in front of her and grabbing her shoulders to stop her movements. She just shook him off and continued to fret.

Suddenly, they both froze in their tracks. Someone was moving outside the door.

_"Quick!"_ Draco hissed and shoved Hermione over towards the open window. He picked her up and sat her on the window ledge before grabbing both of her hands and lowering her out. They were just in time, because at that moment, the door opened and Harry and Ron burst into the room.

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Okay, that's all I'm going to put in this chapter, because I want to put the next bit in the next chapter. Please review and tell me if this story just totally blows or not. If I don't have a total of at least 10 reviews by Wednesday, I think I will discontinue this story. That's only 5 reviews for this chapter. It's possible, right?


	4. Chapter 4

Okay, so I didn't get the five reviews I asked for, but after having a good cry about it, I have decided to continue writing this story just because I can't bring myself to stop something once I start (I was just kidding about the crying thing). Also, I decided to put them in their seventh year, so this story doesn't necessarily follow the books since Dumbledore is still alive.

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He was sitting in the window seat by the large, open bay window with his back to them. His head was turned so he could watch the door and his arms were dangling out the window and couldn't be seen beneath the window ledge. Harry and Ron froze when they saw Draco. Draco froze too, but it was more because he couldn't move from the window for fear of dropping Hermione than his shock of seeing the two Gryffindors.

"Bloody Malfoy, what are you doing here?" Ron grated through clenched teeth.

Draco sneered at the red-head. "There was a meteor shower last night and I decided to watch the show. I happened to fall asleep and what a _joy _that I should be so rudely awakened by you two," he answered truthfully enough.

"You haven't seen Hermione, have you?" Harry asked, trying to ignore his hate for Draco.

"Why, have you lost her?" Draco laughed mirthlessly. "She's probably hanging around somewhere right under your nose and you're just too stupid to-_ouch!"_ he stopped talking and wrenched his right hand back into the room where he stared at the scratch marks on his wrist. Suddenly, his face paled and he shot his arm back out and down as though he were searching for something.

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Hermione clung to Draco's hands as she dangled several stories above the ground while she listened to the veiled insults being bandied about in the room above her. She couldn't help but roll her eyes at how juvenile the boys all seemed to behave, despite the fact that they were all seventeen.

Tired of holding on to Draco's hands, Hermione began to look around for a ledge or foothold of any kind. When she looked down, she was relieved to see a wide ledge just a couple feet below her.

Draco had a death grip on her hands, and although she found it comforting that he seemed to care so much about whether or not she felt to her death, her shoulders were really starting to hurt, so she dug her nails into his wrist to get him to let go. She felt bad when she heard him scream, but she was also happy that he chose to let go, allowing her to drop easily onto the ledge where she moved a few feet away and hid behind the curve of the wall.

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Draco felt as though his stomach had dropped right out of his body. He didn't mean to let go of Hermione, it had just happened! Why the heck had she dug her nails into him, anyway?

Suddenly, he remembered that he had an audience, so he stood up, trying not to appear too shaken, and glared at Harry and Ron before exiting the room. It was all Draco could do to keep from bursting into a run before the door shut behind him.

"That was odd..." Harry said, staring at the space Draco had been occupying mere moments before.

"I'll say. What's gotten into that git, anyway?" Ron asked, glaring at the door.

"Who knows? He's been acting awfully strange lately, though." Harry was fidgeting with something in his pocket.

"Well, are you hungry? 'Cause I'm starved," Ron said, changing to a more appealing subject.

"I'll be down in a few minutes, you go ahead without me," Harry said. Ron just nodded and left.

Once he was gone, Harry pulled the piece of paper out of his map and muttered, "I solemnly swear I am up to no good," and touched his wand to the center before watching the spider web of lines spread away from the tip. When he looked at the Astronomy Tower, sure enough, there was his own dot, and another which said "Hermione Granger" just a short distance away. However, her dot appeared to be on the outside of the tower.

Suddenly, a light came on in the attic; metaphorically, of course. Harry leapt over to the open window and stuck his head out, looking around. "Hermione?" he called.

"Hi, Harry," he heard a feminine voice say from somewhere below him and to the right. Looking over, he saw Hermione standing against the wall of the Tower on a ledge. She seemed to be embarrassed about something, because she wouldn't quite make eye contact and her cheeks seemed flushed.

"Hermione, what are you doing out here? Let me help you in, okay?" he said, conjuring a small step ladder so she could climb in.

"Nothing," she responded. Unfortunately, Harry had already put two and two together.

"Hermione, why were you in the Astronomy Tower with Draco Malfoy?" he asked, his voice quiet.

"Oh, Harry! I-" she broke down sobbing. This wasn't at all how she had wanted to tell her best friend that she was dating his worst enemy.

"Did he hurt you?" Harry's eyes roved her face and body, searching for any signs of abuse.

"No, of course not! Harry, Draco and I are dating," she said, her voice dwindling to a whisper on the last word so that Harry had to strain to hear her.

"You're dating? What about Ron?" Harry asked with incredulity.

"I've moved on. I'm sorry, Harry, I know you don't like Draco. I didn't for a long time, either. We had a...well, a connection during our comas. I think we shared in an alternate reality type situation, as science fiction as that sounds. Anyway, I've discovered that he's really a sweet, gentle, compassionate person. He just has a bit of a temper and a bad-boy attitude that you have to get past first. Please, Harry, don't make trouble. I really am happy with Draco. And _please_ don't tell Ron! I'm afraid of how he'll react. I want to do it in my own time. Promise me?" Hermione pleaded.

Harry was indecisive for a few moments. He couldn't help but feel slightly betrayed that his best friend was dating his worst enemy, but at the same time, she was his best friend and he knew Hermione would never try to hurt him. Grudgingly, he said, "Okay, Hermione, I promise. But if I ever find out that he's hurt you in any way, Malfoy will be singing soprano...permanently." He added a very demonstrative gesture, just to ensure that Hermione got the point. She smiled at his protectiveness and nodded in agreement.

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How was that? Review, please! Thanks to everyone who does review, by the way. I love you guys!


	5. Chapter 5

Wow, it's been months since I updated. Sorry. I guess I'm just not into this story very much. I'm gonna try to wrap it up in the next two or three chapters, I think. I just don't have much of an interest for writing it.

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Draco rushed through the corridors, half blinded by the stinging tears threatening to spill from his eyes.

_Please, not Hermione. Let her be okay! _He thought as images of her mangled corpse sprang into his head.

At last he reached the huge entrance doors which he immediately opened and ran through. He rounded the corner of the castle just in time to run smack into Professor Dumbledore.

"Ah, Mr. Malfoy. Where are you off to in such a hurry?" Dumbledore peered at Draco over the top of his half-moon spectacles.

"I...Hermione Granger just fell from the top of the Astronomy Tower!" Draco whimpered, unable to hide his emotions. Dumbledore's gaze intensified.

"Are you sure of this?" He asked, placing a hand on Draco's shoulder. Draco just nodded and looked down. "Come. We have to find her." And with that, Dumbledore turned and rushed down the corridor, robes billowing behind him like loose sails in the wind.

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Hermione sat under a large tree by the lake while Harry went and pilfered some breakfast for her. She was too shaken to brave the questions and contempt of Ron right now, so she promised Harry that when he returned she would tell him everything.

"Well, Mrs. Norris smelled the sausage and it was tricky business trying to convince Filtch that I wasn't up to no good with my pockets crammed with food, but here it is," Harry said, flourishing a rather soggy looking handkerchief which seemed to contain some rather runny looking eggs, smashed bacon, and breakfast sausage, all coated in what at one point was probably a biscuit. "Eh, sorry it doesn't look more appealing..." Harry began to apologize.

"Oh, it's fine," Hermione smiled, taking the handkerchief. She took out her wand, pointed it at the food, and said a small incantation. After a blue flash, the food was pretty enough for the Queen.

"So, a deal's a deal. What happened between you and Draco? Sure, he doesn't seem to be as cruel to you lately as he used to be, but I just figured that perhaps the ferret had found someone new to pick on." Harry grabbed a piece of bacon and began munching as he peered at Hermione over his glasses.

"Well, are you prepared to accept some rather strange, completely unrealistic circumstances?" Hermione questioned.

"Hermione, think about it. Until the age of eleven, I lived under the stairs in my aunt and uncle's house, where anything out of the ordinary was shunned and ignored. And then I got a letter saying that I was a wizard and a half-giant man carried me away on a flying motorbike to a school that teaches students how to perform every sort of magic. Suspending reason isn't terribly hard for me," Harry smiled.

Hermione chuckled, remembering her own disbelief when she got her Hogwarts letter. "Okay, Harry, here goes." And with that, she told him about everything that had happened in her coma, from Frankfurt and Elsa to meeting Dumbledore and having a building collapse on her in World War Two London.

When she finished, Harry was silent, apparently contemplating the grass around his ankles. Eventually he looked up. "That's a pretty fantastic story, Hermione. Someone should write it down. But as it stands, I suppose that I understand why you feel a connection with Malfoy. Honestly, if all I knew about him was what you just told me, I'd probably like him. Unfortunately, I don't. Maybe things will get better, though. Well, your secret is safe with me. I promise not to tell Ron, although you may want to soon before he starts getting more ideas about you and he together. Anyway, we should probably head back in. I could use your help with a Potions paper."

Hermione laughed, and when Harry stood up, he offered her his hand, pulled her to her feet, and they walked back to the castle.

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Draco and Dumbledore arrived at the base of the Astronomy Tower to be confronted with a rather unexpected situation. Instead of Hermione lying on the ground, either dead, unconcious, or roiling in pain, there was nothing, merely a grassy stretch of land sloping down to the Forbidden Forest, a few hundred feet away.

After a moment of speechless disbelief, Draco turned to Dumbledore. "Do you think someone already found her and took her to the hospital wing, Professor?"

Dumbledore scanned the ground, and his face gradually went from pinched and worried to a look of relief. "No, Draco, I don't believe she has been taken to the hospital wing," he began.

"You mean someone has taken her body to..." he trailed off, his mind wandering to the horrible things that lived in the Forbidden Forest, just a short distance away; an easy hiding place for any centaurs or ill-willed creatures.

"No, not at all. In fact, there are no signs of anyone falling around here. I don't believe Miss Granger ever made it to the ground, as a matter of fact. Draco, did you see Miss Granger fall?" Dumbledore asked.

"Well, yeah..." Draco thought of standing backwards while holding her slippery hands. And then the sensation of her nails in his flesh. Why did she have to do that?

"Did she fall from the window? That window, perhaps?" Dumbledore said, pointing up towards the top of the tower. Draco turned and looked. There was the window they had been at. And about ten feet under it was a fairly wide ledge.

Draco gasped. Of course! She had dropped onto the ledge! But where was she now?

"Thank you, Professor, I have some homework to attend to," Draco excused himself and darted off. Dumbledore just stood and chuckled.

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Harry and Hermione were sitting in the library working on their respective homework when Ron plopped down at the table with them.

"I just ran into that prick Malfoy. Literally. He ran straight into me. He seemed really flustered and surprisingly glad to see me, for some reason. Actually, he was asking if I'd seen you," Ron said, pointing to Hermione. "I told him that I hadn't and in case he'd forgotten, we'd be looking for you earlier this morning with no luck. Well, apparently Harry eventually found you. But I didn't know. Hey, where have you guys been, anyway?" Ron asked, suddenly curious.

Hermione just ignored him. "Oh no! I completely forgot! He thinks I just dropped out of a window in the tower!" she cried and ran off, leaving all of her belongings behind.

"Uh...am I missing something here? Because I have that feeling like when you read a book and accidentally turn two pages at once so you miss everything and are completely lost and confused. Know what I mean?" Ron said, turning to Harry with a questioning look. Harry just shook his head 'no' while avoiding eye contact and began scribbling notes furiously. Ron shrugged and began opening his own books.

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Okay, there it is. I have a few ideas in mind for the next chapter or two, and hopefully I can crank them out soon. Please review! I hope you'll forgive me for the delay.


	6. Chapter 6

Wow, it's been ages since I last wrote this. I have no idea what to talk about in it, but I'll try. I'm going to attempt to wrap it up soon. Like, in the next chapter or two, because otherwise I'm never going to finish this.

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Hermione jogged through the halls of Hogwarts, clutching her side to try to quell the cramping ache that was forcing her breath out in little wheezing gasps. _I have no idea how people manage to run so much! They must be insane. Give me a book and a cozy chair any day,_ she thought.

She rounded a corner and was confronted with Draco sitting on the floor in front of the library.

"Finally! I knew you wouldn't be able to stay out of here for too long! What the heck were you thinking?! You could have been killed! I've been worried si-" Draco's rant was cut off by Hermione placing her hand over his mouth and dragging him down the corridor before anyone saw the couple together.

"I'm sorry, Draco. My hands were starting to hurt and there was a ledge that I was able to land on anyway. I guess that as soon as you left the room Harry came back and found me. I was so caught up telling him about..." she trailed off and dropped her eyes.

"About...us?" Draco questioned. Hermione merely nodded, afraid to meet his gaze. She knew that he would be furious that Harry now knew about their situation. "Hermione, look at me. Please," Draco asked. Slowly, Hermione raised her eyes. She was relieved to see that he wasn't upset. "Hermione, Potter and Weasel, I mean Weasley, are your friends, right? And that makes them important to you, right? Then I'm not going to cause any more trouble with them. I don't want to hurt you or force you to choose between us."

"Oh, Draco, thank you so much! I've been so worried about this situation. Now that you and Harry are both okay with it, I've just got to convince Ron. That could be much more difficult, though. He absolutely hates you, and he's been trying to make a move on me for ages. I used to think that I was attracted to him, too, but now I realize that I could never care for someone the way I care for you. Well, at least Harry will probably try to help me with Ron. I should probably go try to break the news to him now. No sense in prolonging the inevitable," she sighed and began to stand from where she had been seated against the wall, but Draco grabbed her hand and pulled her back down.

"Wait, I have something that may help," he said.

"Oh really? What?" Hermione leaned forward to see what he might draw from the recesses of his robes, but instead Draco gently grabbed her face in his hands and softly kissed her lips.

"Oh..." Hermione sighed as she slowly sat back and opened her eyes. "You're right, I feel like I'm floating," she grinned before bouncing up and gliding smoothly down the hall. Draco just smiled at her retreating figure.

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"You what?!" Ron was shouting, his face bright enough to match his ginger hair. Hermione was cringing in front of him, taking the brunt of her friend's wrath. "You and bloody _Malfoy?!_ Hermione, have you gone completely insane?! He's the biggest bloody wanker who ever - _augh!!_" he trailed off unintelligibly.

"I'm so sorry, Ron, I don't how it happened, but it did. I can't help myself, and he really does care about me. And he promised to try and be nicer to you and Harry. Please, Ron, try to understand," Hermione begged.

"No, Hermione, you try to understand. That bloody git has done nothing but do his absolute best to make life here a living hell for me and Harry, and you too, if you care to remember! I don't know what he's done to you, but I'd be willing to bet is just another one of his devilish ploys to cause more meaningless pain to us. He's probably just doing it to cause a riff between the three of us!" Ron jabbed his finger into Hermione's sternum to emphasize his words. She looked at him with watery eyes and a quivering chin.

"No, Ron, you're wrong. He may have hated us before, but now I know that he would risk his life for me," she whispered before turning and walking away.

Ron was torn. Obviously his friend was hurting, and he was the cause of her pain. She really did seem to care for the ferret, despite his obvious short-comings. He wanted to run after her and tell her it was okay and they'd figure something out, but at the same time, his heart was hurting too. He had always thought of Hermione as 'his girl', even though he had never actually vocalized this idea. He had never really contemplated that Hermione might not agree with this. What would he do without her? He didn't want to do the right thing and concede defeat, but he couldn't see any other way to keep Hermione in his life without having her resent him. If he couldn't have her love, he still wanted her friendship.

"Hermione, wait!" he called, and grabbed her arm just as she stepped out of the portrait hole to leave the common room. He followed her out and closed the portrait. "Hermione, I'm sorry. The idea of you and that - _Malfoy_," he amended his word choice at the look Hermione shot him, "together does something funny to my stomach. A bit like when I hexed myself and vomited slugs. Anyway, I hope that you can forgive me. I don't want to see you get hurt. I'll try to be civil to him, but it'll be hard for me. I would do anything for you, Hermione, even if it means giving you up. I love you, and I'll always be here for you."

"Oh, Ron, thank you so much, you have no idea what that means to me!" Hermione smiled up at him through watery eyes. "I know this must hurt you, and I wish there were some other way, but I just can't help how I feel. I will always be your friend, Ron." Hermione stood on her tip-toes and lightly kissed Ron, then threw her arms around his neck and gave him a big hug.

"Ugh. I hate being a good sport when I lose," he sighed into her hair. Hermione giggled.

"Ron, you haven't lost, you just haven't found the right girl for you yet," she grinned, pecked him on the cheek one last time and skipped down to the Great Hall.

--

"Honestly, Draco, why are you being so, so..._mean_ lately?" Pansy pouted. Draco was sitting in a chair in Slytherin common room when the girl had crept up behind him, wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed his cheek. She had quickly found herself practically thrown on the floor in front of him in a rather undignified sitting position.

"Since when is it acceptable to sneak up behind someone and kiss them when they don't even like you that much?" Draco said without even looking up from his book. Pansy let out a huff, stood up and stomped off. "Sometimes I wonder if I'm too good looking for my own good," Draco chuckled under his breath before marking his page, standing up and exiting the room into the hall.

--

That night during supper, Draco was sitting at the Slytherin table, as always, wedged between Crabbe and Goyle. As he sat there eating, Hermione waltzed into the room. He nearly choked on his steak when he saw her. Since it was a Friday evening she didn't have to be in her school robes, and she had opted for something a little more attention grabbing. She wore an amethyst-colored top with just one sleeve, her nicest dark-wash jeans, a pair of gold kitten heel sandals, and a little bit of gold jewelry to accent everything while her hair had been half pulled up with just tendrils trailing around her neck and ears. To Draco, she was breath-taking. He saw her cast just a very brief glance in his direction, and he realized she was putting on a show for him. He winked and finished eating, stood, and exited the Great Hall.

--

Hermione watched Draco leave and was slightly annoyed that he didn't seem more interested in staying and watching her, so she ate in a rush and followed him out, when she stepped out of the Great Hall, she closed the doors and looked around to try and determine which direction he may have gone when she felt someone grab her shoulders. She almost shrieked from surprise, but then Draco's face appeared next to hers. He smiled at her, winked, and pulled her a little ways from the doorway before spinning her around to face him.

"That's quite the outfit you're wearing tonight, Miss Granger. Very provocative, I must say," he smiled wolfishly.

"What, this old thing?" Hermione giggled and pirouetted so he could get a better view of the entire ensemble.

Draco grabbed her roughly by the waist and pulled her into him. Their eyes locked and Hermione could feel the electricity flowing between their bodies. Slowly, slowly Draco leaned in and Hermione's eyes closed just as his lips grazed hers. One of his hands wound up and caught the back of her head, twining into her hair, loosening the style she had worked to produce, while the other stayed wrapped around her small waist. Hermione raised her arms and placed them around his neck, stroking his hair with one hand. The kiss was pure ecstasy.

Suddenly, the doors to the Great Hall burst open and students were flowing out around them, shouting, laughing, and gasping when they caught sight of the unlikely couple.

"DRACO!!" A distinctly angry, feminine voice sounded right by the blonde's ear. He sighed, and opened his eyes, pulling his mouth away from Hermione's but still holding her close. He was shocked to find himself in the center of this mass of humanity; he had been so distracted that he hadn't heard the commotion at all. And now he was confronted with an irate Pansy Parkinson.

"What is it now, Parkinson?" he practically snarled.

"What are you doing with this _mudblood_?" Pansy hissed. Draco raised his hand to slap the girl, but was restrained by Hermione. She stared up at him with silent pleading in her eyes, and Draco resigned himself to trying to resolve the situation peacefully.

"Not that it's any of your business, but _Hermione_ is my girlfriend," Draco sneered, enjoying the look of anger and hurt that slid across Pansy's face at the last word.

"Look, I know that everyone's going to have a hard time believing that Draco and I are actually dating and not killing each other, but we are. I can't explain it, but things are different now. We've decided to embrace our differences and work together instead of constantly fighting and causing one another pain," Hermione said to the now attentive crowd around them.

"Yeah, and if you don't like it, you can just bugger off," Draco said. He then wrapped his arm around Hermione's waist and started to lead her outside, but before they exited the building Hermione stopped and turned.

"Why did everyone just come running out of the hall like that, anyway?" she asked, suddenly curious.

"Oh, someone set off a stink bomb," a third year chirped.

"Who?" Hermione had reverted back to her authoritarian mode.

"Ron Weasley," another voice volunteered.

Hermione peered around the crowd until she caught sight of Harry, who had a slightly chagrined look on his face, and he glanced back at the partially open doors to the Great Hall where McGonagall was lecturing a dejected looking Ron.

"This isn't over," Hermione said to Harry, who nodded. Then she and Draco exited into the bright sunlight outside, leaving the student body to rethink their whole system. If Draco and Hermione could get along, a Slytherin and a Gryffindor, mightn't others be able to do the same thing? Many rejected the idea, but a few decided to hold out hope.

--

Okay, super stupid ending, I know, but I'm sick of writing this story. So that's it. No more sequels, nothing. This story is done. And if anyone is wondering, Ron set off the bomb as a last act of revenge against Draco so that he and Hermione might be caught and have to explain themselves to everyone. I just didn't feel like putting that in the actual story. Okay, I'm done, I'll probably get almost no reviews, but at least I finally finished this story! Thanks to those of you who actually read it.


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